Adding the hens and a rooster to a new batch of chicks (20)

[Rivers Edge Homestead]

I am trying to figure out the best way to go about this…. We are finishing up construction of a new coop and have 20 chicks in a brooder who need to get out into a bigger space asap. They aren’t all fully feathered yet, some are a week or so older than the others. There is one rooster in that bunch for certain and a possible second. At the same time we have a friend who is moving and can’t keep his three hens and rooster that were hatched last fall. We are going to take his birds and would like to integrate the hens into our flock for sure, though with too many roos I’m sure somebody will end up in the freezer. Any tips on the introduction? I wondered if we should surround a kiddie pool with cardboard walls to be a larger brooder within the coop to keep our chicks in till they’re all fully feathered. Any input would be appreciated!

 

[Buckingham Palace]

How I put my baby Silkies in with the adults was I hope them in a cage near the other chickens so That they could see and Hear each other I left it like this for a few weeks and then I opened the door between the two coops and I watched them interact always ready to step in and then finely when I was certain they could be alone together I left them in. I. Hope this helps. My Silkies where a few months old when I intergraed them.